UC San Diego Rady School Alums Help Local Economic Growth

The Rady School of Management is helping San Diego‘s economy—and that’s thanks to startups coming out of its graduating classes.

Since the school’s first MBA class graduated just over 10 years ago, its students and alumni have gone on to start 150 operational companies, according to the school. More than 70 percent of these are still in San Diego, adding $2 billion into the economy both locally and nationally. Overall, 15 percent of Rady graduates operate a successful company.

These startups include a number of industries, including biotech, consumer products, and healthcare, among others. In the first half of 2017, startups raised more than $75 million, a rate that continues to grow throughout the end of 2017.

Rady alum Suman Kanuganti graduated in 2014 and went on to found Aira, a tech company that helps visually impaired people by wearing a device that connects them with remote agents. Another graduate, Silvia Mah, created HeraLabs, a business accelerator made exclusively for women.

“The Rady School’s approach is to support startups from ideation and development to the successful launch and growth of a company,” Rady School Dean Robert S. Sullivan said in the press release.

The Lab to Market course is behind this success. Students learn all about startups and how they get from proposal to realization. This course creates an environment where students get real-world experience. The accelerator programs build on this approach by mentoring these up-and-coming businesses.

Rady might be young compared to other business schools around the country, but it offers lots to its students and their ambitions. Sixteen Nobel Laureates and McArthur Foundation award winners have come out of the school. Someone can obtain an MBA through its full-time program or flexible program.

Then, they can launch their own company confident in Rady’s abilities—and their own.

regions: San Diego

About the Author